Henry II, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben (1215 – 12 June 1266) was a German prince of the

House of Ascania The House of Ascania (german: Askanier) was a dynasty of German rulers. It is also known as the House of Anhalt, which refers to its longest-held possession, Anhalt. The Ascanians are named after Ascania (or Ascaria) Castle, known as ''Schloss ...

and ruler of the principality of

Anhalt-Aschersleben Anhalt-Aschersleben was a short-lived principality of the Holy Roman Empire ruled by the House of Ascania with its residence at Aschersleben in present-day Saxony-Anhalt. It emerged as a subdivision from the Principality of Anhalt from 1252 to 131 ...

. He was the eldest son of

Henry I, Count of Anhalt Henry I ( 1170 – 1252), a member of the House of Ascania, was Count of Anhalt from 1212 and the first ruling Anhalt prince from 1218 until his death. Life He was the oldest son of Count Bernhard of Anhalt probably by his first wife Judith (o ...

(who was raised to the rank of prince in 1218), by his wife Irmgard, daughter of Hermann I, Landgrave of Thuringia.

Life

Henry was co-ruler of the principality of Anhalt with his father from 1244. After his father's death in 1252 the Anhalt state was divided between him and his brothers. Henry took over the old family areas of

Aschersleben Aschersleben () is a town in the Salzlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated approximately 22 km east of Quedlinburg, and 45 km northwest of Halle (Saale). Geography Aschersleben lies near the confluence of the r ...

Hecklingen Hecklingen is a town in the Salzlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated on the river Bode, approx. west of Staßfurt, and northeast of Aschersleben. International relations Hecklingen is twinned with: * Nisko in Polan ...

Ermsleben Falkenstein/Harz is a town in the Harz district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was created in 2002 by merging the town of Ermsleben with the former municipalities of Endorf, Meisdorf, Neuplatendorf, Pansfelde, Reinstedt und Wieserode. The new c ...

and Wörbzig. Through his mother, Henry was related to the Landgraves of Thuringia; in 1247 he intervened in the

War of the Thuringian Succession The War of the Thuringian Succession (German: ''Thüringisch-hessischer Erbfolgekrieg'') (1247–1264) was a military conflict over a successor to the last Landgrave of Thuringia for control of the state of Thuringia (now in modern-day Germany). ...

and spoke out in support of an alliance with

Albert I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Albert the Tall ( lat, Albertus Longus, german: Albrecht der Große; 1236 – 15 August 1279), a member of the House of Welf, was Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg from 1252 and the first ruler of the newly created Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbü ...

(his brother-in-law), who in return promised to give him some Thuringian lands. He was defeated and captured in battle near Besenstedt in 1263, but was released shortly after. He soon renewed his war against Thuringia. In 1265 he was captured again and forced to renounce completely his claims to lands in Thuringia. In 1257, Henry supported King

Alfonso X of Castile Alfonso X (also known as the Wise, es, el Sabio; 23 November 1221 – 4 April 1284) was King of Castile, León and Galicia from 30 May 1252 until his death in 1284. During the election of 1257, a dissident faction chose him to be king of Germ ...

as German King and led military actions against the monasteries and archbishops of

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebur ...

and bishops of

Halberstadt Halberstadt ( Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, the capital of Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town center that was greatly destroyed by Allied bombi ...

as well as his brothers and cousins. In 1266 he raised Aschersleben to the rank of a city.

Marriage and issue

In 1245 Henry married Matilda (d. Gernrode?, 25 October / 1 December? 1297), daughter of

Otto the Child, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants ''Audo'', '' Odo'', ''Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded f ...

, and Matilda of Brandenburg and great-granddaughter of

Otto I of Brandenburg Otto I (c. 1128 – July 8, 1184) was the second Margrave of Brandenburg, from 1170 until his death. Life Otto I was born into the House of Ascania as the eldest son of Albert I ("Albert the Bear"), who founded the Margraviate of Brandenburg in 1 ...

, older brother of Bernhard of Anhalt, Henry's grandfather. They had two sons: # Otto I, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben (d. 25 June 1304). # Henry III, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben (d. 9 November 1307). On Henry's death his sons were still minors and his widow Matilda assumed the regency of the principality until 1270, when they reached adulthood. Shortly after, Matilda took the veil and became Abbess of

Gernrode Gernrode () is a historic town and former municipality in the Harz District, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2014, it has been part of Quedlinburg.Princes of Anhalt-Aschersleben 1215 births 1266 deaths Place of birth unknown